My father’s men had retreated. With frightened shouts, they barricaded themselves in the lodge as the Sea Wolf rushed towards them.
“No,” I cried, stumbling and almost falling. Only Nanny’s firm grip, tugging me forward, kept me upright.
I realized she was pulling me up the cliff.
“You cannot help him now.”
“He’s a monster. The curse will never let him go.” The wind snatched at my hair and numbed my face.
“And he’ll lay waste to your father’s land. The lodge will not hold him back, no matter what your father thinks.”
My breath was a rock in my throat. The vision I’d had would come true. The lodge roof on fire. The men and women’s bodies strewn around. Dòmhnall was dead, he would not lay waste to the island. But Ægir, mad with the curse, would.
“There’s no time,” Nanny shouted over the wind. Her hands peeled away the layers of cloaks around me. I shivered, naked in the cold air.
“He loves you?”
I nodded.
Nanny turned me to the cliff’s edge and gave me a little push. “Then fly.”
I tottered on the grassy ledge. “But—”
“You can do it child. You’re the raven. Lead him home.”
And I knew what I must do.
Below on the beach, Ægir’s men finished off the last of Dòmhnall’s and watched their leader seek new prey.
The Sea Wolf climbed on the roof of the lodge and tore into the rushes. A few more heartbeats and he’d break through, and lay waste to the frightened people huddled below. My people. My family.
No time to lose.
I stepped up to the cliff edge. My toes curled. Far below, the sea crashed into the rocks.
“Do it, Muireann. Fly!” Nanny called. “Fly away girl, with the magic your mother gave you.”
I spread my arms and leapt into the air. The world tilted. The Change came over me between one breath and the next. The wind caught my wings before I hit the water, and I soared upwards in a warm draft. I was light and free, no longer hungry or sick or tired. Magic indeed.
I flew over the beach. Hawk’s teeth flashed and he gave a wave. I cawed a hello and flapped to gain height.
The monster on the lodge roof paused in the act of ripping the thatch bundles apart. I let loose a stream of scolding cries. The wind tugged my tail feathers and I turned and flew back over the beach. Straight over the water.
That’s it, daughter, my mother’s voice whispered. That’s the way.
Behind me, the monster bounded to the ground. His men scrambled out of the way, but the monster ignored them and the heaps of dead bodies. He waded right into the water, roaring as if he wanted me to wait. I floated on an updraft. Would he sink? Or swim?
The Sea Wolf reached the depths and sank into the waves for one horrible heartbeat. Then his head broke the surface, his furry arms and legs churning the water.
I cawed and pointed my beak into the mist. The small shadow of a bird coasted over the water, leading the white-furred creature toward the open sea. I could only hope the magic gave him enough strength and stamina to follow me where I flew. I did not know how long we would journey. I did not even know the way.
Mother, guide me, I prayed. And bravely, stupidly, flapped into the grey.
For a moment my senses scrambled. Up was down and down was up. I forgot to flap my wings and tumbled closer to the water. Animal instincts took over and I regained the height, cawing to scold myself. I must trust myself, and the raven. Below, the white-furred beast swam doggedly on. He would follow me to the ends of the earth and beyond. I must figure out where to go.
Ahead, made of mist and light, a figure detached itself from a cloud and flew ahead of me in the shape of a raven. I stretched and strained my wings to follow. We flew through the fog, the spirit raven leaving a trail of light for me to follow.
It took longer than it should’ve for me to realize where the light raven led me. Nanny had hinted about the secret haven across the water, the home my mother built. Nanny had wanted me to fly there and hide from Dòmhnall. Nanny knew my mother hadn’t kept it for her own solitude. My mother had kept it for me. And the story they both told was one I needed to hear.
As a raven flies true, you’ll always find your way home.
It was destiny then. His and mine.
5
I did not know how long I flew, leading the Sea Wolf home. He swam with boundless energy and I found new strength in knowing the curse wouldn’t kill him before I could bring him home.
At last the mists broke. The raven of light cawed and soared away, becoming one with the sun sparkling on the calm waters. A green land stretched before me; one I’d never seen. No houses nor people, only a few white dots that might be sheep grazing on their lonely pastures. But on the edge of the water, at the end of a long line of rocks, stood a little hut. The one my mother built. The one Nanny spoke of.
Home.
The Sea Wolf was another, larger, white dot in the great sea. I waited until I was sure he knew where I was headed and used the favorable wind to outdistance him. I had to hurry if I wanted to arrive first and make ready.
The moment my claws touched land, I transformed. I sprawled, a naked, wild haired woman, on the little hut’s doorstep. Teeth chattering from the Change, I pushed open the sturdy door. It swung open easily before me in welcome. I said a prayer of thanks to my mother and hurried inside.
The hut wasn’t too big, but it wasn’t too small. Ægir would fit through the door. He wouldn’t be able to stand anywhere but the apex of the roof, but he could sit by the hearth. Or lie on the bed…
I pressed cold hands to flaming cheeks. The air was unseasonably warm, but I was chilled from my flight. There was a neat stack of driftwood beside the hearth. I peered up the stone chimney to be sure there were no nests in it, and saw a simple grate at the top, cunningly keeping any creatures out.
The tinder was dry, too. No mold had taken hold within the stone walls. The place wasn’t even too dusty. The shelves on the walls were mostly empty, but other than a few spiderwebs, they were clean. There was a cedar box under the bed, and I found a few of my mother’s work dresses. The bed held woolen blankets, uneaten by any moths.
My mother knew how to keep a household. The door kept out any curious sheep and here and there were packets of mint to deter mice.
I tossed a bundle of herbs on the fire as I’d watched Nanny do and said a word of thanks. For one heartbeat, my skin prickled with a rush of magic, but then it was gone, and the hut was a normal, if strangely tidy for being so long out of use, place.
Home.
I bundled up in a blanket, grabbed some fishing line off the shelf, and went to catch some dinner.
The wind nipped my skin, but I didn’t see the use in wearing one of the dresses. Not until I could be sure a certain warrior wouldn’t tear them with clumsy claws. Besides, he’d be naked too, unless the magic gave him some clothes.
A long strip of rocks stretched from the hut’s doorstep out to sea. I clambered over the dark, wet shape until I came to the end of the spit. There I cast out my fishing line and tried not to stare too often at the horizon. I lost my fight and ended up climbing the tallest stone where I shaded my eyes and waited for a white-furred shape to appear.
It was a long, lonely watch. I’d caught three fish and strung them up before a figure broke the serene line where sea met sky. The Sea Wolf had done it. He was almost home.